A survey found that an overwhelming majority of minority groups in the United States supports a moratorium on immigration to help stop the spread of coronavirus.
A USA Today/Ipsos poll conducted earlier in April found that 71% of non-white respondents support a ban on immigration as a means to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, a notable result given many critics of the Trump administration claiming an immigration ban to be xenophobic.
Only 16% of minority respondents disagreed with the idea of blocking immigration amid the pandemic. Even more white Americans, 83%, supported a ban.
The poll was conducted between April 9 and 10, before President Donald Trump first announced a large-scale prohibition on immigration to protect Americans’ health and job security.
U.S. Border Patrol agents detain undocumented immigrants caught near a section of privately-built border wall under construction on December 11, 2019 near Mission, Texas. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
Upon his announcement, Democratic lawmakers immediately lambasted the ban as xenophobic and racist.
“Trump will ban immigration but allow some Southern states to loosen restrictions,” Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar tweeted shortly after his announcement. “This has nothing to do with our safety and everything to do with his blatant xenophobia.”
“President Trump now seeks to distract us from his fumbled COVID-19 response by trying to put the blame on immigrants,” Democratic New York Rep. Jerry Nadler said in another response. “This is a disgrace — demonizing so many of those who are serving on the front lines against COVID while the President shows himself as small and ineffective.”
Trump’s plan, unveiled Wednesday, specifically restricts many green card applicants abroad from entering the United States, but leaves exceptions for temporary migrant workers.
Other recent surveys find strong minority support, Hispanic individuals in particular, for a number of immigration-related items that are opposed by Democratic lawmakers.
A Rasmussen Weekly Immigration Index conducted from April 12 to 16, for example, found that 71% of Hispanic individuals favored E-Verify as a way to ensure employers only hired legal workers; and 62% of Hispanic individuals agreed that if a business is struggling to fill open positions, it should raise wages instead of importing foreign workers, even if it means that prices rise. (RELATED: ICE Arrests Illegal Alien Wanted For Allegedly Raping A Minor In His Home Country)
Despite being a fairly loyal constituency for the Democratic Party, a survey released on Friday by Latino Decisions found that just 49% of Latino registered voters would pull the lever for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
The results indicated lower support for Biden compared to prior Democratic presidential nominees.
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